>From the “Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships,”
(1981) Vol. 8, pp.29-33.
WAHOO
Wahoo: A dark blue food fish of Florida and the
West Indies.
SS-238
Displacement:
Surfaced: 1,525 t.
Submerged: 2,424 t.
Length: 311’10”
Beam: 27’4”
Draft: 15’2” (mean)
Speed:
Surfaced: 20.25 k.
Submerged: 8.75 k.
Complement: 60
Armament: 1 3”; 2 .30 cal. MG; 2 .50 cal. MG;
10 21” torpedo tubes
Class: GATO
The first WAHOO (SS-238) was laid down on 28 June 1941
by the Mare Island Navy Yard, Vallejo, Calif.; launched on
14 February 1942; sponsored by Mrs. William C. Barker, Jr.;
and commissioned on 15 May 1942, Lt. Comdr. Marvin Granville
Kennedy in command.
Following fitting out and initial training along the
California coast which took the submarine as far south as
San Diego, WAHOO departed San Francisco on 12 August, bound
for Hawaii. She arrived at Pearl Harbor on 18 August and
underwent exercise training until the 21st.
Two days later, the ship got underway for her first war
patrol and stalked enemy shipping in waters near Truk,
particularly in the area between the Hall Islands and the
Namonuito Atoll. On 6 September, WAHOO fired three
torpedoes at her first target, a lone freighter, but all
probably missed, because the ship turned and headed for
WAHOO. WAHOO "kept going," fearful of counterattack from
the air. This retreat was a damaging blow for the crew. As
one crew member put it, "After the exhausting months of
drills, it was demoralizing to creep away submerged from
that first target."
The submarine continued to patrol the Truk area until
20 September when she decided to leave the southwest part of
the patrol area and explore south of the Namonuito Atoll.
Under a bright moon and clear sky, the submarine sighted a
freighter and her escort. WAHOO fired three torpedoes, all
three missed. A fourth torpedo hit the target, which took a
port list and settled bodily and by the stern. Four minutes
later, a series of three underwater explosions racked the
freighter. WAHOO was chased by the escort but escaped by
radically changing course in a rain squall. Kennedy claimed
a freighter of 6,400 tons, but postwar analysis of Japanese
shipping records showed no sinking at this time or place.
WAHOO continued her patrol and sighted several
airplanes, a patrol boat, and a tender but was unable to
close on any possible targets. On 1 October 1942, the
submarine extended her patrol to Ulul Island where she
sighted several fishing boats. Within the next few days,
Kennedy would miss two of the best targets of the war. The
first was aircraft tender CHIYODA, which came along without
an escort. Kennedy did not have time to get into position
to shoot. On 5 October, WAHOO sighted an aircraft carrier
which Kennedy believed to be RYUJO, sunk six weeks earlier
in the Solomons. Whatever it was, it came into sight
escorted by two destroyers. Due to an approach, which
Kennedy later admitted lacked aggressiveness and skill, the
target sailed away untouched. Two days later, WAHOO
departed the patrol area. On 16 October, she made
rendezvous with her escort and proceeded to Pearl Harbor.
WAHOO arrived at Hawaii on 17 October 1942 from her
first war patrol and commenced refit the following day
alongside submarine tender SPERRY (AS-12). She then shifted
to the Submarine Base, Pearl Harbor, for overhaul. There, a
4-inch gun and two 20-millimeter guns were installed.
Overhaul was completed on 2 November; and, after a three-day
training period, WAHOO was ready for sea.
On 8 November 1942, WAHOO got underway for her second
war patrol in company with the small escort vessel,
submarine chaser PC-23. She arrived at her assigned area in
the Solomon Islands and continued her patrol, keeping in
sight of Bougainville and Buka Islands. On 30 November, the
submarine spotted smoke at a distance of 8,000 yards. WAHOO
sighted a lightly burdened freighter or transport with a
destroyer escort on station on the port bow of the target.
The submarine's approach was unsuccessful, and she proceeded
east of Cape Hanpan.
Having patrolled the Buka-Kilinailau Channel for 17
days, on 7 December, the submarine decided to patrol the
direct route between Truk and the Shortlands for a few days.
This proved fruitless, and WAHOO returned to her former
hunting grounds the Buka-Kilinailau Channel. On 10
December, while making her return trip, WAHOO ran across a
convoy of three heavily loaded cargo ships escorted by a
destroyer. She chose the largest tanker as the first target
and fired a spread of four torpedoes at a range of 700
yards. Although three torpedoes hit, it took two hours for
the KAMOI MARU to sink. The destroyer got too close and
WAHOO started down before another attack could be launched.
The destroyer dropped approximately 40 depth charges which
were fairly close aboard, causing minor damage. Kennedy was
urged to mount a second attack. Using the new SJ radar,
executive officer Mush Morton and Lt. Dick O'Kane argued, it
would be easy to knock off the freighter and possibly the
destroyer. However, Kennedy had had enough. WAHOO moved
into a new area, and the convoy continued on to the
northeast.
Four days later, a hospital ship was sighted headed for
the Shortlands. WAHOO then sighted a submarine proceeding
singly on the surface with the designation I-2 painted on
the side of the conning tower. WAHOO fired a divergent
spread of three torpedoes at a range of 800 yards. The
first torpedo hit 20 feet forward of the conning tower. The
boat went down with personnel still on the bridge. In
postwar records, however, WAHOO was not credited with this
sinking. On 15 December, she left the area and looked into
Kieta Harbor, Buka Island, and passed Moreton Light on the
26th for entrance into Brisbane, Australia, where she
commenced refit the following day. On 31 December, Lt.
Comdr. Marvin Granville Kennedy was relieved as commanding
officer by Lt. Comdr. D. W. Morton.
Morton had served as executive officer of WAHOO during
her first two patrols under Kennedy. Morton, endeared to
his Annapolis classmates as "Mushmouth" (abbreviated "Mush")
because of a knack for yarn-spinning, was an uncommonly
talented submarine officer. Before WAHOO left Brisbane on
her third war patrol, her first under "Mush" Morton, the
skipper gave the crew a flaming pep talk. Morton said,
"WAHOO is expendable. We will take every reasonable
precaution, but our mission is to sink enemy shipping....
Now, if anyone doesn't want to go along under these
conditions, just see the yeoman. I am giving him verbal
authority now to transfer anyone who is not a volunteer....
Nothing will ever be said about your remaining in Brisbane."
No one asked for a transfer, and this speech inspired a new
spirit amongst the crew, a feeling of "confidence in the
capabilities and luck" of WAHOO and the thought that she was
"capable of performing miracles."
Of the many innovations Morton had put into effect on
WAHOO, the most extraordinary was having the executive
officer, Dick O'Kane, not the captain, man the periscope.
George Grider, a junior officer, commented: "This," he
explained, "left the skipper in a better position to
interpret all factors involved, do a better conning job, and
make decisions more dispassionately. There is no doubt it
is an excellent theory, and it worked beautifully for him,
but few captains other than "Mush" ever had such serene
faith in a subordinate that they could resist grabbing the
scope in moments of crisis." Thus evolved the successful
and renowned duo of Morton and O'Kane.
WAHOO was ready for sea on 16 January 1943. She
commenced sound listening tests in Moreton Bay, then fell in
with her escort, destroyer PATTERSON (DD-392), to begin her
third war patrol. Three days later, the submarine passed
into Vitiaz Strait en route to her patrol area. WAHOO's
orders were to reconnoiter Wewak, a Japanese supply base on
the north coast of New Guinea. There was one large problem
about reconnoitering Wewak: WAHOO had no charts of the
harbor. However, it turned out that one of the motor
machinists had bought a cheap school atlas while in
Australia. It had a map of New Guinea with a small
indentation labeled "Wewak." With that as a reference,
Morton located the unmarked area on a large Navy chart and
had a blowup made of the Navy chart with an ingenious device
composed of a camera and signal lights. Then, to the crew's
amazement, they learned that Morton's definition of
"reconnoiter" meant to penetrate the harbor and sink
whatever ships could be found.
On 24 January 1943, WAHOO dove two miles north of
Kairiru Island and proceeded around the western end to
investigate Victoria Bay. She sighted a destroyer with
RO-class submarines nested around it. The destroyer was
getting underway, so Morton fired a spread of three
torpedoes at the moving target. They missed and were
observed going aft. Another fish was fired which the
destroyer avoided by turning away, then he circled right and
headed for WAHOO. The submarine watched the ship come, and
she kept her bow pointed at it. Morton delayed firing the
fifth and last torpedo in the forward tubes until the
destroyer had closed to a frightening distance of 800 yards.
This torpedo clipped him amidships "and broke his back. The
explosion was terrific." The topside was covered with
Japanese on turret tops and in the rigging. Over 100
members of the crew must have been acting as lookouts. The
target's bow was settling fast, and her boilers were heard
to explode. WAHOO had no difficulty escaping the area.
Morton was certain that the destroyer sank. However, he was
not credited with a kill.
The next day, WAHOO changed base course for Palau. On
26 January, the submarine sighted the smoke of two
freighters, obtained a position, and fired two torpedoes at
the leading ship and, 17 seconds later, two at the second
freighter. The first two torpedoes hit their points of aim
in bow and stern. The third torpedo passed ahead of the
second freighter, but the fourth torpedo was a hit. Upon
observation of the damage, WAHOO discovered that there were
two freighters, a huge transport, and a tanker. The leading
freight was listing badly to starboard and sinking by the
stern; the second ship was headed directly for WAHOO, but at
a slow speed. WAHOO fired a three-torpedo spread at the
transport; the second and third torpedoes hit and stopped
him.
Turning her attention to the second target, FUKUEI MARU
NO. 2, which was still headed for her, WAHOO fired two bow
torpedoes "down the throat" to stop him. The second torpedo
hit, but he kept coming and forced the submarine to turn
hard left at full speed to avoid being rammed. There
followed so many explosions that it was hard to tell what
was happening. Coming to periscope depth, WAHOO observed
that the first target had sunk, the second target was still
moving, evidently with steering trouble; and the transport,
BUYO MARU, was stopped but still afloat. WAHOO headed for
the transport and fired a bow torpedo which passed directly
under the middle of the ship but failed to explode. She
then fired another torpedo which headed right for the stack
and blew her midships section "higher than a kite." Troops
jumped over her sides "like ants off a hot plate." Her
stern went up, and BUYO MARU headed for the bottom. The
submarine then headed for the crippled second target which
had joined with a tanker. WAHOO decided to let these two
ships get over the horizon, while she surfaced to recharge
her batteries and to destroy the estimated 20 troop boats
now in the water. The water was so thick with enemy
soldiers that it was literally impossible to cruise through
them without pushing them aside like driftwood.
WAHOO changed course to intercept the two fleeing
ships. She decided to attack the tanker first since she was
as yet undamaged. With only four torpedoes left, the
submarine fired two at the tanker, the second hitting him
just abaft of his midships, breaking his back. He went down
almost instantly. WAHOO then turned her attention to the
freighter and fired her last two torpedoes without a spread.
They both hit; and 15 minutes later, the freighter sank. It
had required four hits from three separate attacks to sink
this ship. WAHOO then set a course for Fais Island. That
night, Morton drafted a triumphant report for Pearl Harbor:
"In ten hour running gun and torpedo battle destroyed entire
convoy of two freighters one transport one tanker . . . all
torpedoes expended." However, postwar Japanese shipping
records only credited WAHOO with three sinkings for this
date: the transport, BUYO MARU, 5,300 tons; FUKUEI MARU,
2,000 tons; and an unknown maru, 4,000 tons.
On 27 January 1943, WAHOO made contact with a convoy of
eight ships, including two freighters and a tanker.
However, efforts to gain a position were foiled by a
persistent destroyer escort who dropped six depth charges.
The submarine had no option but to retreat since she had
previously expended all torpedoes. The next day, WAHOO
sighted Fais Island, and her plan to shell a phosphorite
refinery was scrapped due to the untimely appearance of an
inter-island steamer.
The submarine departed for Hawaii and arrived there on
7 February, 23 days after leaving Brisbane. For her
entrance into Pearl Harbor, WAHOO had donned topside
embellishments to celebrate her victory. There was a straw
broom lashed to her periscope shears to indicate a clean
sweep. From the signal halyard fluttered eight tiny
Japanese flags, one for each Japanese ship believed to have
been sunk in all three of WAHOO's patrols. Morton was
nicknamed "The One-Boat Wolf Pack" and awarded a Navy Cross.
>From Port Moresby, General MacArthur awarded Morton an Army
Distinguished Service Cross.
WAHOO commenced refit by a tender relief crew and the
ship's force. On 15 February, refit was completed, and the
submarine was declared ready for sea on 17 February. She
then conducted two days of training and was drydrocked at
the Submarine Base, Pearl Harbor, on 21 February.
On 23 February 1943, WAHOO got underway for Midway,
where she arrived four days later, topped off, and headed
for her patrol area. For WAHOO's fourth patrol, Morton was
assigned an area never before patrolled by United States
submarines: the extreme northern reaches of the Yellow Sea,
in the vicinity of the Yalu River and Dairen. One reason
for this was that the water was extremely shallow, averaging
120 feet. But the "wading pond" barely fazed Morton, he
welcomed virgin territory. From 27 February to 11 March,
the submarine was en route to her patrol area, conducting
training dives, fire control drills, and battle surface
drills. She had the unique experience of making the entire
passage to the China Sea without sighting a single aircraft;
thus making the entire trip on the surface. On 11 March,
WAHOO commenced a submerged patrol in her assigned area and
along the Nagasaki-Formosa and Shimonoseki-Formosa shipping
routes.
On 19 March 1943, the shooting began with a freighter
identified as ZOGEN MARU. A single torpedo was fired, and
it hit the after part of the ship, causing it to
disintegrate upon impact. The forward part of the freighter
sank two minutes later. There were no survivors. Four
hours later, WAHOO sighted a new freighter, KOWA MARU, and
fired two torpedoes. The first torpedo hit under the
target's foremast with a terrific blast, but his bow
remained intact. However, a tremendous hole up his side was
visible. The second torpedo hit amidships, but it was a
dud. Two more torpedoes were fired, but the freighter
maneuvered and avoided them. That defective torpedo cost
WAHOO a victim, plus the opportunity to shoot more targets
at this location.
WAHOO then patrolled off the Korean coast, just south
of Chinnampo. On 21 March, she sighted a large freighter
identified as HOZEN MARU. She fired three torpedoes, and
the third torpedo hit the target amidships. The Japanese
freighter was literally disemboweled. He went down by the
bow, attaining a near vertical angle and was out of sight in
four minutes, leaving approximately 33 survivors clinging to
the debris.
Four hours later, WAHOO sighted the freighter NITTSU
MARU. The submarine fired a spread of three torpedoes; two
torpedoes hit the target, one under his bridge and the other
under his mainmast. The ship went down vertically by the
bow and was out of sight in three minutes. Four survivors
remained who ignored all efforts to rescue them. After
collecting a few souvenirs from the scattered wreckage,
WAHOO commenced a surface patrol, heading for Shantung
Promontory. On 22 March, the submarine headed for
Laotiehshan Promontory, just around the corner from Port
Arthur.
The following day, WAHOO patrolled Laotiehshan Channel,
also known as "Sampan Alley;" the submarine was literally
surrounded by them. WAHOO sighted a medium-size freighter
and fired one torpedo. This hit collier KATYOSAN MARU just
under the bridge immediately enveloping her in a screen of
coal dust. She settled fast and slowed down; 13 minutes
later, nothing was seen of her.
Morton set a course for a point to the northeast of
Round Island, off Dairen. In the vicinity of the port's
approaches, the deepest water is about 50 fathoms, with an
average depth of around 20 fathoms. The Yellow Sea was no
place for a submarine to be caught unawares. In water that
shallow, depth charges would go off "like firecrackers in a
birdbath."
On 24 March, at 1247, WAHOO sighted smoke and began to
make her approach. At 1949, she fired a spread of three
torpedoes at a large tanker which was fully loaded with fuel
oil. The first two torpedoes exploded prematurely, and the
third missed. WAHOO fired a fourth shot, and it, too,
missed. The target commenced shooting at WAHOO. The
submarine surfaced after 14 minutes of ducking shots, gained
position ahead, and dove. She fired another three torpedo
spread. The torpedo hit the engine room and sank the ship
in four minutes. The tanker was identified as TAKAOSAN
MARU.
The next day, WAHOO sighted freighter SATSUKI MARU.
She fired a spread of two torpedoes; but, when each exploded
prematurely, Morton ordered a battle-surface. The submarine
closed in on the target and raked him with 20-millimeter
shells and holed him with almost 90 rounds of 4-inch. The
target caught fire in several places and sank in about one
hour.
WAHOO left on the following morning to investigate a
ship on the horizon, which proved to be a small diesel
driven freighter. The submarine commenced firing with her
20-millimeter and 4-inch guns. The freighter tried to ram
the submarine, but WAHOO had no trouble in keeping clear.
She continued her gunfire and had the freighter blazing from
stem to stern and dead in the water. The crew alternated
looks through the periscope as the freighter sank.
Later that day, WAHOO sighted a 100-ton trawler and
opened up with her 4-inch and 20 millimeter guns. When all
three 20-millimeter guns jammed, Morton brought the
submarine alongside the riddled trawler and the WAHOO men
hurled on board some homemade Molotov cocktails, gifts from
the marines at Midway. WAHOO departed, leaving the ship in
a wrecked condition, spouting flame and smoke. On 28 March,
while conducting a surface patrol on the Shimonoseki-Formosa
shipping route, WAHOO opened fire on two lighted motor
sampans with two 20-millimeter guns. They did not sink but
were also left in a wrecked condition.
The following day, the submarine sighted the freighter
YAMABATO MARU and fired two stern shots. The first torpedo
hit at the point of aim under the mainmast and completely
disintegrated everything abaft of the stack. The forward
section sank in two minutes. The second torpedo was aimed
at the foremast; it missed because the first torpedo stopped
the freighter in its tracks.
WAHOO surfaced, transited Collnett Strait, and headed
for her base, thus concluding a war patrol which topped the
record to that date in number of ships sunk. When Morton
reported his results to Pearl Harbor, the reply was:
"Congratulations on a job well done . . . Japanese think a
submarine wolf pack operating in Yellow Sea. All shipping
tied up."
Meanwhile, the United States mounted its offensive
against Attu, and Admiral Koga returned his major units from
Truk to Tokyo Bay for the sortie to Alaska. Forewarned by
codebreakers that the Japanese intended to counter the Attu
invasion by a major sortie of the fleet, Lockwood sent his
top skipper to the Kurils to intercept it, "Mush" Morton in
WAHOO.
On 6 April 1943, WAHOO arrived at the Submarine Base,
Midway Island, and commenced refit the following day. On
the 21st and 22d of April, the submarine conducted training
exercises underway and was declared ready for sea on 25
April.
WAHOO began her fifth war patrol on 25 April, departing
Midway under air escort for patrol areas via the Kuril
Islands. The following day, she commenced a surface patrol
along the Kuril Islands and reconnoitered Matsuwa, taking
photographs of the enemy installations there. The submarine
explored the islands of the Kuril chain to the southwest and
found them to be barren and completely covered with snow and
ice.
On 4 May, WAHOO proceeded to reconnoiter the northeast
tip of Etorofu Island; she found nothing and changed course
to the southeast. Morton was positioned to intercept a
seaplane tender, KAMIKAWA MARU. The submarine sighted the
target and fired a divergent spread of three torpedoes. The
first torpedo hit between the stack and bridge, the other
two shots missed. KAMIKAWA MARU turned away and was making
11 knots, with a slight list. WAHOO continued on an
easterly course, surfaced and continued her patrol of the
Kuril chain southward.
Three days later, WAHOO submerged 12 miles off the
Benten Saki coast and sighted two ships hugging the
shoreline on a northerly course. She fired a spread of two
torpedoes at the leading ship, followed immediately by a
spread of four torpedoes at the escort. The first torpedo
hit the leading ship, TAMON MARU NO. 5, under the stack and
broke her back; the second torpedo missed ahead. The escort
successfully avoided all four torpedoes fired at her and
escaped. TAMON MARU, 5,260 tons, sank, and WAHOO proceeded
down the coast.
The submarine submerged one mile off Kobe Zaki and
sighted a three-ship convoy consisting of two escort vessels
and a large naval auxiliary. WAHOO fired a spread of three
torpedoes; two exploded prematurely, and the third hit but
failed to explode. This ship got away, and Morton was
forced down by the escorts.
On 9 May 1943, WAHOO proceeded up the coast with the
intention of closing Kone Saki. The radar operator picked
up two targets, soon identified as a large tanker and a
freighter in column. They were evidently making the night
run between ports without an escort. The submarine fired a
spread of three torpedoes at the tanker and immediately
thereafter a three torpedo spread at the freighter. WAHOO
had two successful hits, and both ships went down, TAKAO
MARU, 3,200 tons and JINMU MARU, 1,200 tons.
Morton cleared the area to the northeast to patrol the
Tokyo-Paramushiro route. WAHOO continued her patrol; and,
on 12 May, she sighted two freighters. The submarine dove
to gain position for a "two ship" shot where they would come
by in column. She fired four torpedoes from 1 200 yards,
only one was a hit. Then Morton fired his last two
remaining torpedoes. Nothing was seen of the first torpedo
or its wake. The second shot hit under the bridge with a
dull thud, much louder than the duds heard only on sound but
lacking the "whacking" noise which accompanies a
wholehearted explosion. It is considered that this torpedo
had a low order detonation. The other freighter opened fire
with heavy guns and charged WAHOO. The submarine was
helpless to stop the two ships. Morton cleared the area to
the east and set a course for Pearl Harbor.
WAHOO's fifth war patrol was again outstanding in
aggressiveness and efficiency. In 10 action-packed days
WAHOO delivered 10 torpedo attacks on eight different
targets. However, faulty torpedo performance cut positive
results probably by as much as one-half.
This was "Mush" Morton's third patrol as commanding
officer of WAHOO. These three patrols established a record
not only in damage inflicted on the enemy for three
successive patrols, but also for accomplishing this feat in
the shortest time on patrol. WAHOO had sunk a total of
93,281 tons and damaged 30,880 more in only 25 patrol days.
WAHOO arrived at Pearl Harbor on 21 May 1943. The next
day, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander in Chief, U.S.
Pacific Fleet, came on board and made presentations of
awards. A gold star, in lieu of a second Navy Cross, was
presented to Comdr. Dudley W. Morton. On 23 May, the
submarine departed for the Navy Yard, Mare Island, Calif.,
and she arrived six days later to commence overhaul. From
11 to 20 July the submarine underwent intensive post-repair
trials and training. On 20 July, Capt. John B. Griggs, Jr.,
came on board and made presentations of awards. The
following day, WAHOO departed for Pearl Harbor, furnishing
services for surface and air forces while en route. She
arrived at Hawaii on 27 July 1943 and departed on 2 August
for her patrol area. Four days later, WAHOO arrived at
Midway but left the same day.
On 13 August, WAHOO entered the Sea of Okhotsk, having
completed passage through the Etorofu Strait. She arrived
in the Sea of Japan the following day and sighted three
medium freighters headed south. The submarine fired one
torpedo at the trailing ship, but it missed. On 15 August,
WAHOO sighted a large freighter on a northerly course and
broke off the chase on the three freighters. She commenced
a surface tracking of the new target and dove for a
submerged approach. Morton fired one torpedo which hit at
the point of aim but was a dud and failed to explode. She
fired two more torpedoes, and both missed. WAHOO then swung
and headed directly for the target, which presented a good
up-the-stern shot. The submarine fired another torpedo
which missed and must have broached and exploded before the
end of the run. WAHOO soon sighted an OTORI-class torpedo
boat and commenced evading. She decided to move over on the
Hokkaido-Korea shipping route and spend the night and the
following day.
On 16 August, WAHOO sighted a freighter headed south
but made another contact in a better position for attack.
Shifting targets, she fired one torpedo at a medium
freighter; however, it missed. The next day, the scene was
repeated with the same results. Morton decided not to chase
this ship north but to wait for a loaded one heading south.
However, WAHOO sighted a partially-loaded freighter heading
north, and she commenced a submerged approach. WAHOO fired
one torpedo which missed. Just as WAHOO fired, a southbound
freighter and this target passed each other close aboard;
still no hit. She then surfaced and chased the southbound
freighter. While pursuing this ship, the submarine sighted
another target well ahead and away from the coast, so she
shifted targets. While tracking this new target, she passed
two small northbound ships--one looked like a tug and the
other resembled a tanker. WAHOO made a submerged approach
and fired a torpedo at the medium sized freighter. It was a
miss. She fired again; still a miss, but this torpedo,
probably broaching, exploded. The submarine surfaced and
headed further away from the coast.
WAHOO had the worst possible luck with her torpedoes.
Within four days, 12 Japanese vessels were sighted; nine
were hunted down and attacked to no avail. Ten torpedoes
broached, made erratic runs, or thumped against target hulls
"like derelict motorboats." Morton wrote in wrath, "Damn
the torpedoes!" He reported the poor torpedo performance to
ComSubPac and received orders to return to base.
On 19 August, the submarine sighted a ship and
commenced tracking. However, she withheld fire when she
recognized the flag as Russian. WAHOO then headed for La
Perouse Strait. The next day, she sighted a sampan and
fired warning shots across the bow. When the sampan failed
to stop, the submarine opened up on it with her
20-millimeter and 4-inch guns. The sampan was soon a wreck
with no signs of life. However, six Japanese fishermen
surrendered and were taken on board as prisoners of war.
Eight hours later, WAHOO opened fire on two more sampans,
enveloping the ships in flames. Members of the crews jumped
overboard but showed no desire to be rescued. WAHOO
completed the passage of Etorofu Strait and arrived at
Midway on 25 August. She immediately got underway for Pearl
Harbor and arrived there on 29 August.
"Mush" Morton, smarting from his last luckless patrol,
asked to return to the Sea of Japan, and permission was
granted. On 9 September, WAHOO got underway from Pearl
Harbor, topped off at Midway on 13 September, and headed for
La Perouse Strait. The plan was for Morton to enter the Sea
of Japan first, on or about 20 September, with submarine
SAWFISH (SS-276) following by a few days. At sunset on 21
October, WAHOO was supposed to leave her assigned area,
south of the 43d parallel, and head for home. She was
instructed to report by radio after she passed through the
Kuril chain. Nothing further was ever heard from Morton in
WAHOO.
On 5 October, the Japanese news agency, Domei,
announced to the world that a steamer was sunk by an
American submarine off the west coast of Honshu near
Tsushima Strait, with the loss of 544 lives. This was the
8,000-ton KONRON MARU. In addition, JANAC showed that
Morton sank three other ships for 5,300 tons, making the
total for this last patrol, four ships amounting to about
13,000 tons. Japanese records also reported that, on 11
October, the date WAHOO was due to exit through La Perouse
Strait, an antisubmarine aircraft found a surfaced submarine
and attacked, dropping three depth charges. SAWFISH had
been depth charged by a patrol boat while transiting the
strait two days before, and the enemy's antisubmarine forces
were obviously on the alert in that area. There could be
little doubt that this attack fatally holed WAHOO, and that
she sank, taking down "Mush the Magnificent" and all hands.
WAHOO was announced overdue on 2 December 1943 and stricken
from the Navy list on 6 December 1943.
The loss of Morton and WAHOO caused profound shock in
the submarine force. All further forays into the Sea of
Japan ceased, and it was not again invaded until June 1945,
when special mine detecting equipment was available for
submarines. Morton was posthumously awarded a fourth Navy
Cross. When he died, his claimed sinkings exceeded those of
any other submarine skipper: 17 ships for 100,000 tons. In
the postwar accounting, this was readjusted to 19 ships for
about 55,000 tons. This left Morton, in terms of individual
ships sunk, one of the top three skippers of the war. So
ended the career of one of the greatest submarine teams of
World War II--WAHOO and "Mush" Morton.
WAHOO earned six battle stars for World War II service.
[On 11 October 1943, the commander of a Japanese shore
battery over looking Soya Strait reported sighting and
firing on a surfaced submarine. A number of hits were
claimed before the submarine dived and an aircraft from
Ominato was sent to the spot. At 0920, the plane detected
an oil patch and the shadow of a conning tower and bombs
were dropped on this shape. The aircraft radioed for
assistance and circled until other planes arrived. A
submarine was positively identified and more bombs were
dropped until surface ships, including SUBMARINE CHASERs 15
and 43 arrived. These, and other ships, dropped depth
charges. SUBMARINE CHASER 15 reported part of a ship’s
propeller thrown to the surface by an underwater explosion.
More aircraft and AUXILIARY MINESWEEPER 18 arrived, but
nothing more of the submarine was seen.
Harry Holmes, “The Last Patrol,” p.71]
Transcribed by Michael Hansen
mhansen2@home.com